Govt rejects any notion of local integration of Rohingya: Foreign Secy
Momen said, 'The government is working on extending educational facilities for Rohingya children from grade six to nine according to the Myanmar education curriculum, and providing skills training for young members of the community so that they can maintain their livelihood after returning to their ancestral home in Rakhine at the earliest.'
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen said that the government rejects any notion of local integration of forcibly displaced Rohingya people in Bangladesh.
He made the remarks at a webinar titled 'The Rohingya Crisis: Western, Asian and Bilateral Perspectives' organised by the Center for Peace Studies (CPS) of the South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance (SIPG) at the North South University (NSU) in Dhaka on Monday, said a press release issued by SIPG.
Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, former Foreign Minister of Malaysia Tan Sri Dr Syed Hamid Albar, US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R. Miller, High Commissioner of Canada to Bangladesh Benoit Préfontaine, former Foreign Secretary Mohammad Shahidul Haque and experts from home and abroad participated in the discussion chaired by North South University Vice Chancellor Professor Atiqul Islam.
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Several members the Rohingya community also participated in the session and presented questions for the discussants as well.
Momen said, "The government is working on extending educational facilities for Rohingya children from grade six to nine according to the Myanmar education curriculum, and providing skills training for young members of the community so that they can maintain their livelihood after returning to their ancestral home in Rakhine at the earliest."
Former Foreign Minister of Malaysia Tan Sri Dr Syed Hamid Albar described the Rohingya crisis as a serious violation of human rights, genocide and crime against humanity with implications at the regional levels.
Albar said, "ASEAN, of which Myanmar is also a member, has not taken any meaningful steps regarding the matter as there is a high level of tolerance and unwillingness to discuss the Rohingya crisis inside the ASEAN mechanisms."
US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R. Miller said that his country would continue to press Burma, now Myanmar, to stop institutional persecution against minority communities.
High Commissioner of Canada to Bangladesh Benoit Préfontaine stressed the need for ensuring accountability in Myanmar for crimes committed against Rohingya people, as well as strengthening accountability efforts by the international community, among others, by sending UN Security Council referral to the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice.
Former Foreign Secretary Mohammad Shahidul Haque said, "Bangladesh should consistently and coherently pursue 'hybrid diplomacy' tactics involving bilateral, regional and multilateral pathways anchored in accountability and justice for resolving the Rohingya crisis by ensuring sustainable repatriation of the members of the community to Myanmar."
North South University Vice Chancellor Professor Atiqul Islam said, "Resolving the Rohingya crisis at the earliest is essential for peace and stability in the region."
Over 8,60,000 Rohingya people crossed the border with Bangladesh in the last influx that began on 25August 2017 amid atrocities committed by the Myanmar military and its extremist cohorts.
Bangladesh has been hosting more than 1.1 million Rohingya people for years as two attempts to launch the repatriation on the grounds failed since the signing of agreements with Myanmar, about three years ago, on sending them to their home in Rakhine.
